We have a growing number of statues in the streets downtown, but one
that's well known. Which statue was first? It's actually not there anymore,
except as a modern replacement.
In 1922, the city was looking at a memorial to Colorado Springs founder
General William Palmer. A committee had been formed years before to
sort out the various ideas. While this was happening, a statue was moved
to Nevada and Vermijo avenues, in a little round island in the center
of the
intersection. It had originally been placed in Stratton Park, out along
Cheyenne Road. The piece was in honor of early Colorado Springs
philanthropist Winfield Scott Stratton. Eventually it would be
moved to the Myron Stratton Home. A modern interpretation of the
statue now stands on Pikes Peak Avenue downtown, so there are two of
him.
A General Palmer statue was suggested after his death in 1910. A
committee was formed to plan what it should look like and where it
should go. After years of discussion, an invitation to submit proposals
went out. Oliver Shoup, a city resident and former governor, was
chairman of the committee.
The first serious submittal came from Ann Hiatt Huntington, a noted
eastern artist, in May 1923. She suggested a statue of the general on
horseback. She depicted him as a young man, on his horse, looking at
his dog. When Huntington's pictures were released, a flurry of protests
went up! A prominent complaint was her depicting him as a young man.
Even Irving Howbert, a close friend of Palmer, did not like the proposal.
He said the General would not like it either! He pointed out that the horse
was not a type he'd commonly ridden, nor the dog the kind he'd had as
pets. The model was rejected, and requests for proposals went out again.
Two months later another idea surfaced. This one was closer to what
some people had in mind. The Broadmoor Art Academy and the
Broadmoor Hotel had been visited by Leo Lentelli about the time the
concept for the statue was announced. His model depicted an older, more
rugged General Palmer, with a horse that was more accurate. It also
included a cowboy and a prospector. Although much more to the tastes
of the committee, Lentilli's idea was also rejected. The design concept
was still not settled. It would take a bit longer.
The Palmer statue's location was influenced by the placement of the
Stratton statue. South Park, where the county court house (now Pioneers
Museum) stands, was at the south end of what was then the business
district. North Park (now Acacia Park) was at the opposite end. Pikes
Peak Avenue, Nevada, Weber and Cascade marked the edges of the
downtown at the time. The city planned early on to put Palmer's statue at
Nevada and Platte because it was in the center of town, where US 24 and
US 85-87 meet. Still, not everyone agreed.
The statue was finally installed in 1924. I will share with you in my next
column the selection of the final design and location.